It doesn't matter where you live, rather it be Canada or America.... All companies exist for a single goal, to make money plain and simple! I work for a place that literally will do some really messed up things just so it stays afloat in this new American economy. I've personally had to do, say, and witness things just so we make money.... and I hate myself because I do it. That is business you either sink or swim.

The place I work for will do anything to squeeze an extra dollar if they can...Edited by Frankzro - 12/11/12 at 8:23am

This article is quite stupid IMO. Most large businesses do this, and calling out Google specifically is nothing more than an immature and unfounded attack. The real complaint should be about the loopholes, not those using them.

If you want people to quit using loopholes, close them. By allowing these practices to go on for decades like they have, the government is condoning the behavior. If they wanted it to stop, they could pass legislation. Money talks and it would be political suicide for any politician (regardless of party affiliation) to propose killing the tax loopholes that help fund their campaigns.

You raise an interesting point here. While raising taxes for corporations and the rich is a rallying cry for liberals, the fact of the matter is that high taxes also discourage market activity and encourages firms to exit the US market. Businesses are in the business of profit maximization, and if the US forces their hand -- free trade will simply let them pack up and move to a different country. The laffer theory is a good case in point: the theory states that in some cases, lower tax rates can increase tax revenue; the point being is that a taxation rate TOO HIGH will encourage many firms to exit the market and/or go elsewhere (offshore). The laffer theory has also been proven in switzerland, who in fact raised tax revenue by lowering tax rates. Their tax rates in years prior neared 80%, lowering it increased tax revenue.

THe last part of your reply is true, albeit not always.

The world has been in a race to lower corporate taxes since the crash in the early nineties, Irelands economic boom came from a low corporate tax. Well look at them now.
This Reagan style of economics doesn't create wealth, it moves it around. Other examples on how lowered taxes can generate more revenue is smokes and booze... The point is simple, lowering taxes might increase revenue but it requires that another country has a company willing to move.

This is not how it works:
- Hey dude! taxes were lowered yesterday!
- Whoa then I'm finally able to start my own company!

This is how it works
- Hey dude! Switzerland lowered their corporate tax!
- Whoa I'm gonna move my totally solvent company over there and buy fifteen boats!
- Yeah!
- Woop! Woop!

My wife as part of qualifiying in accounting here in the UK has actually just been studying tax (and its avoidance) and the level it occurs at is astounding.
What is obvious though is here as well as the US is the massive corporate avoidance has increased to avoid rising tax bills, its a viable arguement that were the tax burden to be lessened on the corporations the level of avoidance would also drop. Avioding tax often costs money (though less than the tax itself) and generates bad press as we see here, the arguement is that if corporate taxes were eased to a point where the avoidance and bad press is no longer worth it you may actually generate more tax. Of course to test this arguement you may go broke as now the horse has bolted it may not return.
What I find more incidious is the individuals in the UK that avoid tax (Indeed some come up with schemes so good the tax man ends up paying them). Corporations I can understand they need to post good figures and tax avoidance is a cheap easy way to do this, individuals that fleece tax (and therefore fleece us all) I find far more irritating.
TLDR - Google doing what google doing.... so are many many others

I've posted this before. This is a Laffer Curve.

This is not to say I agree that a government should be interested in maximizing its "profit" via taxation (what a hellish thought, no?). I didn't chide Apple for their tax-dodging and I'm not going to chide Google for it either. Hopefully, this tax-dodging sends a message to governments.

More and more these days it feels like we are being ruled by landed gentry with a completely different set of rules for themselves. We all feel powerless to enact change because we've let the hydra grow too many heads. They tell us they need more money to shovel out the window to fix the issues they created or to patch up holes in sinking welfare. The "common" person did not create this problem. They were only trying to do right by themselves and their family. They wanted a nation where one can enjoy the fruits of their labor, have dignity in old age, and a helping hand when they stumble. We now have an entire class of citizens who have been institutionalized onto government handouts in lieu of personal ambition, who pay no taxes themselves and insist on raising taxes on the rest of us out of "economic patriotism." Our nation is degenerating into an inpetocracy.

I've posted this before. This is a Laffer Curve.
This is not to say I agree that a government should be interested in maximizing its "profit" via taxation (what a hellish thought, no?). I didn't chide Apple for their tax-dodging and I'm not going to chide Google for it either. Hopefully, this tax-dodging sends a message to governments.
More and more these days it feels like we are being ruled by landed gentry with a completely different set of rules for themselves. We all feel powerless to enact change because we've let the hydra grow too many heads. They tell us they need more money to shovel out the window to fix the issues they created or to patch up holes in sinking welfare. The "common" person did not create this problem. They were only trying to do right by themselves and their family. They wanted a nation where one can enjoy the fruits of their labor, have dignity in old age, and a helping hand when they stumble. We now have an entire class of citizens who have been institutionalized onto government handouts in lieu of personal ambition, who pay no taxes themselves and insist on raising taxes on the rest of us out of "economic patriotism." Our nation is degenerating into an inpetocracy.

We now have an entire class of citizens who have been institutionalized onto government handouts in lieu of personal ambition, who pay no taxes themselves and insist on raising taxes on the rest of us out of "economic patriotism." Our nation is degenerating into an inpetocracy.

Ship them here they can have everything from free money to a dirt cheap house that they can then buy for a fraction of its value (using their free money)..... I'm sure you would find no shortage of working Brits that would happily 1 for 1 swap with them